Fair Play
by toxic-dreamer-2
Summary: Just like a game, Zim," Gaz told him. "Sometimes you win, and sometimes you get destroyed before you even reach level two."


**Total wierdness. I found this document on my computer and wow-blast from the past. It's been a long time since I've really written any IZ fics, so this thing must be old. **

**To tell you the truth, I'm not entirely fond of this story, but it ain't too teribble either so-what the heck, I'M POSTING IT!**

**Enjoy!**

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It was the kind of place you went to when you were trying to lose yourself, when you were trying to forget everything; at least, if you got drunk enough. For the young woman who had just entered the bar, it was just a place she visited every other Friday, where she could sit alone and not be bothered.

She tucked a stray violet hair behind her ear and let her amber brown eyes peer around the room.

__

'Not much happening here tonight'

she observed.

It was unusual for the place to be this empty on a Friday, but perhaps alcohol poisioning and drunk driving had claimed many of the lives that so desperately relied on this place for their happiness. The young women nearly smiled at the thought, though she knew it was wrong to find amusement in the suffering of others, she had never really cared.

She tugged at the end of her short black skirt and moved forward. She took in every face that stumbled pass her, and barely resisted the urge to trip them; though they were too drunk to even consider it being her fault. She frowned at the bar tender, who upon seeing her, began to nervously clean empty shot glasses.

"Miss me?"

Her voice was dark and hollow, and the man behind the counter visible shuddered.

"Y-yes, miss," He said, "Always nice to see a repeat customer."

She lifted an eyebrow skeptically.  
"You're a bad liar."

The man gulped.

"C-can I get you anything tonight?"

She shook her head and brushed back her shoulder length hair.

"No, nothing."

He nodded hesitantly.

"Why?" she asked, glaring at him. "Is that a problem?"

He shook his head and she smirked.

"I didn't think so."

Slowly she took a seat on the bar stool, her back turned to the counter and elbows resting on the top as she casually leaned back.

She looked around again, and wondered why she bothered, tonight didn't seem worth it- definitely not enough losers in the place to make her feel better about her own life.

She was just about to get up when her eyes spotted someone in the back of the room. He was sitting alone in the corner booth, hunched over his cup, his fists clenched and resting on top of the counter. This wouldn't have been a scene to catch many peoples attention, but if you were to even glance in his direction, you couldn't fail to notice the forest green color of his skin.

She lifted an eyebrow in slight amusement and curiosity, perhaps tonight wasn't such a waste after all.

She got up from her spot and slowly made her way toward the back, getting more and more anxious as she came closer. She stopped by the table, her shadow looming over the already darkened surface, but earning no reaction form the seats occupant.

She frowned, not knowing what she should say, but wanting to get his attention without putting forth much effort.

She took the seat in front of him, and as the cushion let out an airy squeak, his head jerked up and his body pulled back instinctively.

She grinned sadistically.

He narrowed his blue eyes at her.

"Who are you?" He asked, accusingly. "And what do you think you're doing, Meat bag?"

She rolled her eyes, though she had already anticipated his reaction.

"I'm sitting," she replied evenly. "And you know who I am,...Zim."

The boy blinked in surprise and ran his hand through his messy black hair as he looked at her, confused.

She sighed and idly fumbled the skull pendant at the end of her necklace.

Zim gasped. "GAZ-HUMAN!"

Gaz growled slightly.

"It's _Gaz_, Zim." she told him, "Always has been, but you never seem to get it right."

He blinked and frowned angrily.

"What importance does your name hold to me?" he asked.

Gaz clenched her hands.

"Watch it." She warned.

Zim smirked, unafraid.

"I have long since surrender my fear of your human threats," he told her, then added quickly, "Not that I had any fears, but if I did, then I certainly wouldn't."

Gaz's brow arched.  
"That doesn't even make sense."

"Ha!" Zim smirked. "Even you, in all your Gaz-like wisdom, can not understand my genius."

Gaz rolled her eyes, Zim was more annoying than he was entertaining, but after being away from him for almost 2 years, she had forgotten.

"So," She said, glancing at his cup. "I didn't know Aliens got drunk."

Zim snorted.

"I would not even consider swallowing such putrid waste," he told her. "This cup..."

He looked down and grabbed it with both hands, his thin fingers wrapping around it.

"This cup is just for the appearance." He stated, looking down into its content and scrunching his face up in disgust.

"Of course." Gaz replied, uninterested. "I can see you changed your disguise too."

Zim looked down at himself. He was wearing a long sleeve maroon shirt with two thin black stripes going down both of his sides, a pair of loose fitting blue jeans held up by a thin black belt, and a pair of plain black sneakers with purple laces. His once pointy black wig was now short and spiked and on his wrist he sported a strange looking black and purple watch.

"Eh...yes," Zim shrugged, almost embarrassed. "Zim can no longer be accused of wearing the _dress_."

Gaz almost felt her lips turn up into a smile, remembering when Zim had been ridiculed for wearing his somewhat dress-like Invader uniform. Dib, of course, had been so happy to not be the one laughed at for once, that he had joined in on the jeering, which had resulted in another one of their many high school fights.  
"So, _Gaz_," Zim cleared his throat and looked away. "How is your..er...brother?"

Gaz blinked, noticing how weird it sounded for him to use her name, and how awkward the question had been for him to ask. Gaz raised an eyebrow with a clearly bored expression.

"Annoying as ever." she replied.

Zim cracked a smile but didn't look up at her.

"He's probably working on some project with dad right now."

The smile faded.

Gaz studied him for a moment.

"Don't tell me you actually miss him."

Zim laughed bitterly and waved her off with a hand.

"ME? ZIM? Miss that bothersome, big headed, Dib-Stink?!" He laughed again. "I can not tell you what joy it gives me to finally be rid of that nuisance."  
Gaz gave him a disbelieving look.

"Riight," She drawled. "I can see your 'take over the world' plans are coming along nicely."

Zim went silent almost instantly, then lowered his head and slumped back in his seat. Gaz thought she should have felt more pleased with herself for causing that reaction, but she wasn't.

"There is no plan."

His voice was low and raspy, lacking the vigor she had come to know from him. She was surprised at how easily he had just admitted it, and she was finally beginning to realize how long 2 years really was. Zim was...different.

"Too bad." She murmured, folding her arms on the table and glaring out onto to the bar.

Zim looked up and raised one eye in question.

"What are you doing here, _little Gaz_?"

Gaz gritted her teeth, hating that he was talking to her as if she were just a child.

"I'm just as tall as you are, Zim," She reminded him. "And I didn't have to use tricks to get this way either."

Zim frowned and mumbled 'just a few growth enhancers' under his breath.

"As for what I'm doing here," Gaz went on. "I could ask you the same thing."

"Ha!" he smirked. "As if I'd tell you."

Gaz shrugged.

"I don't really care." she said, matter of fact.

Zim looked almost disappointed as leaned back in his seat.

Gaz inwardly sighed.

"The only reason I come here is to get away," She told him. "I'm guessing you had the same idea."

Zim looked up and nodded hesitantly, then when Gaz did not glare at him, he leaned forward.

"There is an all day mar-a-thon of the angry monkey show that Gir insists he must watch," He told her in an annoyed tone. "And the computer has decided that it needs a 'vacation' and will not put up sound barriers around my facility."

Gaz lifted an eyebrow and Zim continued.

"Can you believe it?! MY COMPUTER refuses to obey me, ZIM, and my robot minion only wishes to view the earth broad cast systems!" He exclaimed while wildly waving his hands. "Zim can no longer be at home in his own base with such madness."

Gaz leaned back in her seat as Zim continued, half of her wanting to tell him to shut up or she'd kill him, while another part of her realized that the ex-invader had probably not been able to rant to someone like this for a long time. As she let him carry on, she realized with a stab of surprise that she was actually sympathizing with him. Her, Gaz, actually relating to someone, and not just any someone, an alien!

"Zim."

The alien stopped in mid-rant and looked at her.

"Shut up now, or suffer." She warned him in a deadpan voice.

He seemed to take no offense and just nodded and went silence.

'Hmm...strange,' Gaz mused. 'Most people would have either gotten angry or frightened.'

"So..er...Gaz," Zim questioned, "What is it that you are getting away from?"

Gaz shrugged, not believing he was really interested.

"It doesn't matter," She replied. "There's really no escaping reality."

Zim's features seemed to soften at her response, then he glared down into his cup again.

"Perhaps one horrible day you will find your reality to be a lie," he said with a sort of sad bitterness. "Then what will you do, human?"

"I'll start over," Gaz replied in an annoyed but serious voice.

Zim looked up, confused.

"Just like a game, Zim," Gaz told him. "Sometimes you win, and sometimes you get destroyed before you even reach level two."

Zim blinked, listening.

"When you get beat, you don't just give up and mope about it, " Gaz glared at him, "You may think that's your only option, Zim, but that's what makes you such a loser."

Zim glared.

"Zim is no loser!" he exclaimed. "I have played no such games and have lost no such levels."

Gaz glared at his stupidity.

"Liar! You've always been playing a game, Zim. That's all you and my idiot brother ever did," she told him heatedly, "But you know what?"  
Zim continued to glare at her.

"You lost, Zim," She smirked. "You lost and you can't stand it."

Zim gritted his teeth.

"It must have really bothered you when Dib finally decided to try real science," Gaz grinned. "The games no fun without someone to play with, huh Zim?"

Zim was breathing heavy now.

"You could have just destroyed this place," Gaz continued, "But instead you kept biding your time, expecting my brother to swoop in and try to stop you, and when he didn't, you finally realized the truth."

She leaned forward.

"You would never be able to win," Gaz whispered harshly. "There is no victory."

Zim stood up abruptly and growled down at her.

"You know nothing you speak of, filthy human!"

"Then what are you doing now, Zim," She rose to challenge him. "Still wondering what could have been, mourning the loss of a game you never intended to let end."

When Zim did not respond Gaz stepped out in front of him.

"You just couldn't stand being ignored, could you," Gaz said. "You took your things and found a new place for your base. But you know what, Zim? He didn't go after you."

Zim then let an almost hurt look flash across his face.

"Even my stupid brother knew that it was over, but you? You just couldn't let it go."

Zim looked down.

"And it's gotten you nowhere."

She turned to leave, suddenly feeling angry at the ex-invader.

"You know, Zim," She said quietly. "I knew you were a loser, but I didn't think you were a quitter too."

She started to walk off but a hand had grabbed her wrist.

"Zim is no quitter."

His eerily calm voice sent an unwelcome shiver down her back as she turned to face him.

His hand was no longer covered by a black glove and his thin skeleton like fingers had coiled perfectly around her small wrist. His eyes seemed darker now, serious and cold, and his face was shadowed partially.

"Let go." She said, calm but angry.

His grip tightened around her wrist and he gritted his teeth.

"First you will tell Zi-,er," He stopped himself. "Fist you will tell _me_ that _I_ am no quitter!"

Gaz snorted in the back of her throat. "Prove it."

He pulled her closer, their faces only inches apart.

"What are you doing?" Gaz asked, with a mix of annoyance and slight apprehension.

She cursed herself, and her body, for enjoying the feeling of being pressed so closely to another. She suddenly found herself trying to peer behind the fake lenses of his contacts, and into his large ruby eyes.

As she did so, Gaz realized that Zim's determined smirk had changed into worry and confusion as he peered into her now open amber eyes. Slowly he let his hand loosen around her wrist until he pulled away completely.

Gaz smirked.

"I knew you didn't have it in you to-"

Before she could finish her sentence, Zim grabbed her shoulders with both hands and pulled her into a fierce, reluctant, and not to mention awkward, kiss.

Zim's eyes were closed tightly as he pressed his thin lips against hers, and gripped her shoulders even more.

Gaz was too shocked in the first few moments to even think to pull away from him, and when she finally came to her senses she could only feel her hand tighten into an angry fist but refuse to make contact. With a scowl she pushed him away with her fists and tried to ignore the heat on her face, that she could only guess was a blush.

Zim blinked wildly, looking more shocked at his action than she had been.

Gaz scowled.

'How dare he,' she mentally fumed, "Nobody touches me, nobody!'

"Argh!" Gaz growled and raised her fist. "Do you have a death wish, spaceboy!?"

Hesitantly, Zim smiled; that same wicked and challenging smile she had seen him give Dib in the past. She quickly realized the mistake in what she had just said...'Spaceboy?'.

Trying not to let the realization show, Gaz continued to glare.

"Well?"

Zim blinked and then smirked again.

"Have I proven myself now?" he asked.

"No." Gaz replied in a monotone voice. "You kissing me has nothing to do with being a quitter, Zim. It certainly proves you're a loser though."

"HA! You are the one who is the loser!" Zim exclaimed.

"Excuse me?" Gaz seethed.

"Poor little Gaz," Zim grinned. "You are no better than Zim. You too have given up and can not even see it."

"You're an idiot, Zim," Gaz replied. "You have no idea what you're talking about."

"Is that so, Gaz," he asked, saying her name with contempt. "You're brother was the expert, you know nothing of Zim."

Gaz blinked in slight surprise and looked at Zim as though she were looking at a stranger. Was he right?

She had known Zim for as long as Dib had, and though she had not been obsessed with him like her brother, she was still a very observant person. Zim had been egotistical, annoying, loud, destructive, and proud. He was awful at comebacks, terrible at taking other peoples advice, and completely ignorant to what others thought about him.

The Zim standing in front of her, however, had changed his disquise, entered a public place by his own choice, just carried a conversation with a human, admitted that his mission was a lie, and above everything else... had just kissed her. A human.

"Maybe you're right, Zim. Maybe I don't know much about you." She confessed. "But that doesn't make me a quitter..it just means I'm not interested."

He smirked.

"Then why did you come to Zim?" He asked. "Have you nothing better to do, human?"

Gaz frowned angrily, not certain how she should respond. Truthfully, she didn't have anything better to do, but she couldn't admit that; wouldn't that make what he was saying true?

She turned and started toward the door but found that he was still close behind.

"I have watched the human pig smellies who come to this place," He continued. "There is no one here with purpose or belonging. There is only those who have nothing."

"What do you want, Zim?" She asked, stopping and glaring over at him.

Zim smirked and stepped toward her, reaching out his hand as an offer.

"Play a game with me."

--

**Like I said, total wierdness. I can't even remember what it was that inspired me to write this, but I'm sure I had my reasons.**

**Please Review!**


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